Take care to give credit to those who work so selflessly for loved ones (From Gazette Series)

Take care to give credit to those who work so selflessly for loved ones

FOLLOWING your lead letter of 24th June, I feel I must write to correct the false impression given that care workers are carers.

A carer is someone who is unpaid and looks after a relative, neighbour, friend etc - very often 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

There are over six million carers in the UK and they save the Government some £57 billion pounds annually. They are the unsung heroes and heroines of this country. Many carers do not recognise themselves as such because they feel it is their duty to care for a loved one.

It makes it even more difficult for them to recognise themselves as carers when the title is constantly misused. Can I please appeal to all those working in the care profession to use the correct terminology so that there is no further confusion.

Care workers also have an invaluable role to play in providing care but they are paid employees.

Crossroads Caring for Carers aims to relieve some of the stresses and strains on carers by providing carer support workers to take over their role for a few hours each week. As well as providing support during the day, we also provide a night service so that carers who have constantly disturbed nights can get at least one good night's sleep a week.

Whilst we would like to be able to help more carers we cannot do so without further funding as we are currently working to full budget on both day and night provision.

However, we do have availability for any carer to receive a wide range of free therapy treatments including physiotherapy. Carers do not have to be receiving help from us to qualify for these treatments and should ring us on 01453 755999 for further information on treatments. One of the stipulations of this specific grant funding is that we target "hidden" carers. This is made more difficult when the title is misused.

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to clarify the situation and to acknowledge the invaluable service that carers give not only to those they care for but the Nation as a whole.

Myrtle Moreton-Cox Manager Stroud & Gloucester Crossroads - Caring for Carers The Hill Merrywalks Stroud